"D*mn it! How can I possibly lose to Fish Ball?" Matcha collapsed to the floor with disappointment sagging through his body, even his tail lay limply next on the ground. A series of ear-splitting shrieks were also heard.

A radiating smile flashed across Fish Ball"s face when he saw just how pathetic Matcha was, "There were at least 50 female cats that came for the blind date. That means he was rejected 50 times!"

Bam! Matcha clutched tightly against his chest and felt his heartbeat growing weaker and weaker. His expression was totally devoid of any spirit or energy.

Zhao Yao tried to salvage the situation with all sorts of ideas but it was to no avail. The mission remained incomplete even after the s.h.i.+p docked.

It was a herculean task for a female cat to even develop a tinge of affection for Matcha. To Zhao Yao, this task even harder than winning the cat king compet.i.tion.

The difficulty of the task only grew exponentially after they left the s.h.i.+p. The chances of him meeting every single female cat were close to zero.

Zhao Yao eyes drifted from the incomplete status of the BOOK to the starry sky as a wave of sadness swept over him.

"Never mind, at least I managed to win Fortune Cat. My income will definitely increase by a few folds from the next month onwards. In the long run, the experience earned using Fortune Cat will be way more than the one earned from this stupid mission."

Zhao Yao was finally ready to redeem his prize after comforting himself. However, he looked around and realized that both Matcha and Roly Poly had suddenly disappeared. If not for his black robes, he would already have exposed his ident.i.ty.

"King George! It"s time to get off the boat!"

"Where did those two fellas go?"

Zhao Yao"s ears gave a slight shudder as he heard Roly Poly"s screams amidst the noise of the scurrying wind. He went straight towards the source of the screams.

Zhao Yao slammed the cabin door open only to see Matcha kneeling on the ground with his front paws tightly clasped together. Meanwhile, Roly Poly was spotted with a shaver in his paw and a cynical smile on his face. He was shaving Matcha"s head!

At the moment, half of Matcha"s head had already been shaved bald. His eyes and paws were both firmly shut together.

Zhao Yao had never expected to see this and roared at the top of his voice, "What are the two of you even doing?"

Roly Poly immediately released the shaver when Zhao Yao"s intimidating voice rang in his head. He instantly rushed over to explain, "Zhao Yao! Zhao Yao! Matcha said that he wanted to be a monk! This has nothing to do with me at all!"

"Amitabha." Matcha greeted with a face of abject despair, "I am no longer the Matcha that you used to know. I am a monk and my name is Green Tea. I have managed to see beyond the travesties of life. Now, my only wish is to spread the name of Buddha before I end my wretched life."

The corner of Roly Poly"s lips curled upwards when he heard those ridiculous claims, "Meowhaha! This time, I had finally managed to get the better of Matcha! No one will be able to take the throne away from me now that he is a monk!"

Zhao Yao rolled his eyes when he heard those absurd words and thought, "Does he really have to turn into a monk just because of 50 rejections?"

"Alright, alright." Zhao Yao dismissed Matcha"s words by dragging him out of the room and squas.h.i.+ng Roly Poly into his cloak. He decided to put an end to this nonsense by saying, "Stop it, alright? I"ll top up your Mobile Legends credit when we get home."

"A monk shall not indulge in such hedonistic activities."

"Oh really? Initially, I wanted to reward you with RMB 500 for your performance in this compet.i.tion."

"Zhao Yao, where is my phone?"

Roly Poly"s body locked up with rage when he noticed a smile crawling up Matcha"s face and whispered, "This piece of tras.h.!.+ Does he even know the meaning of persistence?"

With the two cats in his arms, Zhao Yao finally left the shop and was greeted by the sight of Xiao Yu, the husky, Fish Ball, the Serval cat and Liu Yun.

"Wow. You guys have been waiting for me all this time?" Zhao Yao asked with a beaming smile.

Xiao Yu nodded her head before replying, "Hmph, there is still the threat of the organizers and the contestants stalking us. Hence, we need your help to turn us invisible for us to leave safely. We will pay you for this service."

"Definitely," Zhao Yao nodded his head and continued, "But I have to go collect my prize first!"

Xiao Yu replied with the same cordial nod. There was even a hint of excitement in her voice as she said, "It"s alright, we will wait for you here. And … can I borrow your Fortune Cat in the future?"

Zhao Yao immediately shot down that suggestion and answered, "I am using this cat for an important mission, not for fun. Furthermore, you are just a kid. Why do you even need so much money?"

"I am about to enter middle school! I am not a kid!" Xiao Yu crossed her arms over her chest before remarking condescendingly, "Zhao Yao, if you continue behaving in this manner, you will spend the rest of your life alone."

Zhao Yao replied with a smirk and said, "That is not my concern at all. With money, I can buy anything in this world, including love."

After waiting for more than half an hour, cat king of the north finally returned with an entourage of toy soldiers ambling behind him. One of them even slung a cat bag across his back.

A warm fuzzy feeling radiated from within as Zhao Yao rushed over to receive the cat bag. He lowered his head and saw a cat coated in silky white fur. Only its tail was covered in black. The cat stared at Zhao Yao with a look of disdain. Obviously, this cat was rather unhappy.

"Red Packet! I will be your owner from today onwards! You must listen to me, okay?" Zhao Yao showered it with cuddles and hugs as he received his prize - Red Packet - from the toy soldiers.

Red Packet simply slid him a condescending glare before turning its body around and exposing its b.u.t.t to Zhao Yao.

Zhao Yao did not think too much of its behavior because it was perfectly normal for cats to behave in this manner when they arrive at a new environment.

However, cat king of the north left Zhao Yao some words of caution, "Red Packet does not have a significantly dangerous power but it has the worst temper I have ever seen. Red Packet is just a real-life Scrooge. You must be careful when you"re with it. Also, do not expose it to any electrical devices such as computers or phones."

Zhao Yao nodded his head but none of the words actually registered in his head as he grabbed the cat from the toy soldier"s hands.

Cat king of the north"s eyes squinted into a hard line as he observed Zhao Yao and gang disappear from his sights before whispering, "This headless horseman …"

Suddenly, the vast ocean split into two halves before Li Li, the cat king of the south, emerged from within and asked, "Is this type of person even deserving of the t.i.tle? Don"t you find him rather dubious?"

"This is what you see on the surface. Actually, he is a very principled man." Cat king of the north bellowed in laughter before explaining, "In the first round, he spent so much effort saving the lives of the innocent. For the subsequent rounds, he always made a conscientious effort to ensure the safety of the other contestants. Despite their heavy injuries, none of them are at risk of dying.

However, this also means that he has not demonstrated his full power yet. With his remarkable control over his powers, I dare not imagine how strong he actually is. Furthermore, this man here has not been tainted by his power that he had harnessed. He still retains a pure and kind heart. Hence, he is the perfect candidate to become the cat king of Jiangmen City."

After sending everyone home, Zhao Yao tricked Red Packet into his belly before returning to the café. Given its non-combat power, Zhao Yao was able to lure it inside the belly effortlessly.

On his way back to the café, Nekomata was secretly stalking him in his spirit form. A series of questions flooded his mind as Nekomata pondered, "Why is Zhao Yao so strong? Why does he have Ares"s power? How are Gaia and the rest doing now that they are with him?"

Nekomata knew that he could not suppress his urge to find the answers to his questions.